Brady and Ahlberg were on hand from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. for an appearance on behalf of the Chinese Laundry shoe brand, an official sponsor of the Miss USA pageant.

“We here to model and show off the spring line for Chinese Laundry,” said Brady.

Fans were able to meet and take pictures with the two. The first 100 in line also got a special gift from Chinese Laundry. DJ Rob Everette from 99.5 Vibe also spun tunes for the crowd during and before the meet and greet.

Nine-year-old Janna Calhoun said she wanted to come to the event to meet the two. She said she enjoyed getting her picture taken with Ahlberg and Brady.

“This was the first celebrity I was going to meet,” she said.

Brady said her reign as Miss USA has been great.

“It’s been unbelievable,” she said. “I really didn’t know what to expect and it’s been everything I could have expected and more. I got to compete in Miss Universe and made it to the top 10. It’s crazy that the year’s almost over and I’m trying to figure out what’s next in my life.”

She said she wants to get into hosting.

“I’m hoping to get involved in some kind of hosting career,” she said. “I was a financial accountant before this so maybe tying in the finance aspect of my life too, but we’ll see I still have a couple more months left.”

Ahlberg, who was crowned in November, said her time so far as Miss Alabama USA has been a fun experience. She will compete in the Miss USA pageant in the summer.

“I’m still trying to get used to it, “she said. “I’m having so much fun and it’s been the coolest experience so far. Getting to hang out with Miss USA all weekend, I mean, and just getting to make an impact on our community and meeting all of the kids that I’ve been working with has been a really great time.”

She hopes that appearances such as the Chinese Laundry event will encourage other young girls to think about the Miss Universe system.

“I really would like to get people involved, let people see us and learn about us and get more of a support system going and hopefully get those girls to want to compete,” she said.

Olivia Stiznani, 8, is an example of one of the girls in the crowd Ahlberg hopes to inspire.

She and her mother, Lisa, came across the event while shopping for pageant shoes. Ahlberg and Brady wished Olivia luck on her upcoming pageant and gave her an autograph.

“I just thought it would be neat for her to see some role models like this,” Lisa said.